Point-Of-Sale (POS) devices and self-service terminals (SSTs) often include scanners, such as bi-optic scanners, that are used to scan barcodes affixed to products. Scanners may include one or more of a laser and a camera scanner in addition to other devices integrated therein, such as scales to weigh products and lights to illuminate one or more scanning fields. Scanners themselves may also include a variety of configuration options that influence their operation. Such configuration options may include types or styles of barcodes or other symbologies to scan, sound and visual output signals and triggers therefore such as when a product is successfully or unsuccessfully scanned, communication protocols used to communicate with a POS, SST, or other terminal, and a firmware version to execute, among others. Thus, when a scanner is installed or replaced, the scanner needs to be configured.
Scanners to date have been manually configured directly by a technician. This configuration may be performed by scanning, with the scanner, a series of barcodes encoded with information to set these configurations. The configuration may also be set through manipulation of jumper switches, through another device directly coupled to the scanner, or by other means where a technician directly manipulates the scanner on premises. Deploying and replacing scanners therefore involves more manual effort than simple physical installation and typically requires efforts of trained personnel.